Lurching 49ers Left at a Loss / Home streak ends as Panthers stifle rally

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Naturally, everyone is bound to have a strong opinion as to why the 49ers -- once so princely, so impervious to mistakes and misfortune -- are on the skids. And really, nobody can guess wrong at this point.

Where do you begin? Take your pick: A sluggish offense, an inconsistent defense, shoddy special-teams play, they all were in evidence yesterday at 3Com Park, leading to the kind of miserable outcome that sends the die-hard sellout crowds home early -- in droves.

Rationalize all you want about attrition and injuries, but even the 49ers weren't inclined to excuse themselves. Combine turnovers and missed opportunities, and there you have it. The 49ers -- losers of two in a row -- saw their 19-game home winning

streak come to a screeching halt with a 31-29 loss to Carolina, dropping them to 3-3 on the season.

For all the breaks the 49ers got, or created for themselves, they seemed woefully unable to capitalize offensively. The defense continues to be an enigma.

Embattled cornerbacks R.W. McQuarters and Darnell Walker each had interceptions, with Walker -- who lost his starting job -- returning his 27 yards for a second-quarter touchdown and a 16-10 49ers' lead. Cornerback Mark McMillian returned a Tim Biakabutuka fumble 41 yards for a fourth-quarter touchdown. Safety Lance Schulters had a fourth-quarter pick.

But even Carolina, a suspect team offensively that played without its top two receivers, Rae Carruth and Muhsin Muhammad, much of the game because of injuries, had its way with the scheme and the personnel.

Without a pass rush from the base defense, the 49ers had to blitz, with linebackers and safeties, to pressure the quarterback. Again -- and this analysis is getting old -- the undersized corners were left on an island, forced to cover receivers, in some cases, as much as seven inches taller than them.

"Every week, teams are aiming at us. We know that," Schulters said of the secondary, which allowed Beuerlein to pass for 300 yards. "Nobody's pointing fingers here. We've just got to start making plays to turn that around."

Quarterback Jeff Garcia, looking less poised than in his previous two starts, had little time to set up and threw hurried passes that often missed their target. Many balls were dropped. The running game moved in spurts, never enough of a factor to keep Carolina honest.

"We didn't execute like we needed in this game," 49ers coach Steve Mariucci said. "We need to make a minimum of mistakes in close games like these, fewer than they make."

Jerry Rice, who dropped a first down pass and was wide open in the end zone in the first quarter when Garcia overthrew him on third down, tried to be diplomatic.

"I think it's growing pains," he said. "When you come back with big plays, you can't relax. When you do, something bad is going to happen."

Try as they might, Garcia, who completed 22 of 45 passes for 236 yards and a touchdown, is not Steve Young. Jeremy Newberry is not Kevin Gogan. Nobody has stepped up to replace Chris Doleman or Roy Barker at defensive end. This is a team in transition, with young players who make mistakes and veterans who may be too long in the tooth to carry the load anymore.

"I feel I'm going out there and battling. I'm doing everything I can to help this team win," Garcia said with a sigh. "Unfortunately, things are not going our way. There are little things that we just aren't doing very well.

"Third-down (conversions) continue to be a problem for us. It just doesn't seem like we're finding any sort of rhythm. I don't know if that's me, or if that's all of us. But we all have to look within ourselves and get better. I know I want to get better?"

But does he have the tools? Better yet, does Garcia -- who was sacked three times and hammered relentlessly, reinforcing the belief that concussed quarterback Steve Young is better off on the sidelines -- have the time in the pocket to make things happen deep downfield?

Up 6-0 on two Wade Richey field goals, a slew of mistakes -- a fumble by Charlie Garner on a broken down halfback option play, and a muffed punt recovered by the Panthers when it bounced off Reggie Givens in coverage and a fumble following tight end Chad Fann's first pass reception in two seasons -- cost the 49ers dearly.

Carolina coach George Seifert, returning to his longtime stomping grounds where he spent eight seasons as the 49ers head coach and nine as a 49ers assistant, preserved his title as the NFL's winningest coach by percentage, picking up his 100th career victory.

Like the rest of the NFL, Seifert knew where to attack. Beuerlein threw up timing passes that resembled jump balls, which proved to be easy pickings for Carolina's much- taller wide receivers.

The 49ers moved the ball in the middle of the field. But the red zone seemed to stop them in their tracks. The 49ers drove inside the Carolina 20-yard line in two of their three scoring drives in the first half, but settled for field goals of 38, 34 and 40 yards.

But the momentum swung in Carolina's direction midway through the second quarter. On 1st- and-10 at the Panthers' 36, Schulters alertly pulled down a deflected Beuerlein pass, but bobbled the ball as he came down. The 49ers challenged the call, but replays clearly showed Schulters never had possession.